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The photographer

An eyewitness who witnessed the consequences of a massive Brazilian police operation in Rio de Janeiro has recounted how residents returned with disfigured remains of the deceased individuals.

The bodies "continued arriving: 25, 30, 35, 40, 45...", the photographer described. The total contained those of police officers.

A particular victim was discovered headless - while others appeared "totally disfigured", he said. Several bodies showed what appeared to be blade trauma.

Over 120 individuals lost their lives in the Tuesday operation on a criminal gang - the most lethal operation in the city.

The eyewitness explained that residents first notified him about the operation Tuesday morning by local people of the Alemão neighbourhood, who contacted him informing him gunfire had erupted.

The photographer traveled to the Getúlio Vargas hospital, where the victims were arriving.

Itan explained that security forces blocked media personnel from going into the Penha neighborhood, where the police action was under way.

"Law enforcement personnel formed a line and announced: 'Journalists cannot proceed beyond this point'."

Nevertheless, the eyewitness, who was raised in the area, explained he managed to enter into the restricted zone, where he continued until the next morning.

He reported that Tuesday night, area inhabitants began to search the hillside which divides the community of Penha and the adjacent Alemão area for loved ones whose whereabouts were unknown after the operation.

Community members from the Penha area organized the recovered bodies in a public space - the photographer's images show the reaction of those present.

"The brutality of what occurred impacted me a lot: the grief of relatives, women collapsing, women carrying children, crying, furious relatives," the eyewitness remembered.

The photographer

The governor of the region declared that the large-scale security action with approximately 2,500 officers was intended to stopping a gang called the criminal faction from growing their influence.

At first, local officials stated that "60 suspects along with four officers" were fatally injured in the operation.

They have since said that early calculations suggests that 117 alleged criminals have been killed.

Rio's public defender's office, that gives legal support to disadvantaged individuals, has calculated the total number of casualties to be 132.

Based on expert analysis, the gang stands as the sole illegal faction that in the past few years has been able to make territorial gains across the region.

It is widely considered among the biggest criminal organizations nationally, together with First Capital Command, with a background extending half a century.

According to correspondent an expert, who has long reported on crime in Rio extensively, the criminal organization "functions as a network" with area gang leaders affiliating with the group and becoming "business partners".

The organization engages primarily in drug trafficking, additionally trafficking guns, precious metals, fuel, alcohol cigarettes.

According to the authorities, criminal affiliates have substantial firearms and police said that throughout the operation, they faced assaults via weaponized unmanned aircraft.

The state leader of the region, the political leader, labeled organization participants as criminal extremists and referred to the law enforcement personnel who died during the operation as brave public servants.

But the number of people killed in the security action has faced scrutiny from UN human rights officials expressing they felt "horrified".

During a press briefing on Wednesday, the official supported law enforcement.

"There was no objective to result in deaths. We intended to take suspects into custody without harm," he stated.

He continued that the events worsened as the individuals had retaliated: "It was a consequence of the counterattack they carried out and the excessive violence by those criminals."

The governor further reported that the casualties shown by residents in Penha had been "tampered with".

Through a message on social media, he said that certain victims had been removed of the camouflage clothing that he stated they possessed "in order to shift blame to security forces".

A law enforcement representative representing security forces further reported that tactical gear, protective equipment, and firearms" were stripped from the victims and showed footage seemingly depicting a person cutting camouflage clothing {off a corpse